How can we combat illegal immigration?; Preparation of the EU-Ukraine summit in Kyiv; Increasing support to Ukraine; Conference: Imperial Russia Conquest, Genocide and Colonisation; Opening of the exhibition ‘Janusz Krasiński. No more silence.’; The positive role of hunters in protecting EU biodiversity.

How can we combat illegal immigration?

Irregular migration to the EU is reaching new heights. On Wednesday, MEPs will discuss how to respond effectively to unabated illegal migration and asylum abuse, ahead of the special Council meeting on 9-10 February. The Asylum and Migration Pact and the recently proposed strategy to facilitate the return of migrants and asylum seekers without the right to stay in the EU will be on the table. The ECR Group believes that immigration must finally be controlled in such a way that legitimate asylum seekers can be distinguished from economic migrants, who are supposed to use regular migration channels. This requires stronger borders with more effective controls as well as more money for Frontex. Smugglers must be stopped. Illegal migrants and rejected asylum seekers, but especially dangerous people, should be deported more quickly. NGOs transporting people to Europe’s shores should be subject to a recognised code of conduct. The Mediterranean route, which is often deadly for migrants, must be closed. Another question is whether the constant pressure posed by migration can be managed at all without border fences. That is why the EU should also consider financing such options.

Debate: Wednesday @ 15:00

Preparation of the EU-Ukraine summit in Kyiv

On Thursday, the European Parliament will debate a common position on the 24th EU-Ukraine summit in Kyiv on 3 February, where leaders will discuss financial and military support for the country against Russian aggression. The ECR Group will insist on the full territorial integrity of Ukraine, renew calls for Russia’s immediate withdrawal from all Ukrainian territory, renew calls for tougher sanctions against Russia and more military and financial support for Ukraine, and renew calls for those responsible for war crimes and crimes of aggression to be brought to justice. Everything must also be done to ensure that Ukraine gets the weapons it needs for its heroic fight against the invaders.

Debate: Thursday @ 9:00

Increasing support to Ukraine

On Tuesday, the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Security and Defence Subcommittee will hold an in-depth debate on how to increase support to Ukraine. Andrii Yermak, Head of the Office of the Ukrainian President, and former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen will present their proposals for increased military and financial assistance to Ukraine, known as the Kyiv Security Compact. For the ECR Group, it is clear that everything must be done to ensure that Ukraine wins this war.

When: Tuesday @ 15:00
Where: SPAAK 1A002

Conference: Imperial Russia Conquest, Genocide and Colonisation

On Tuesday, ECR Foreign Affairs Coordinator Anna Fotyga, together with ECR MEP Kosma Złotowski, will host the conference ‘Imperial Russia: Conquest, Genocide and Colonisation. Prospects for Deimperialisation and Decolonisation’ in the European Parliament in Brussels. For many who have experienced Russian oppression in the past, the war in Ukraine can only end when the Russian Federation is completely defeated. In order to finally remove the threat to peace that the Russian Federation still poses, the international community should seek a re-federalisation of the Russian state. The event will cover topics such as ‘Imperial Ideology (From Muscovy to the Russian Mir) & Conquest and Exploitation (from Ivan the Terrible to Vladimir Putin)’, ‘Impact of Moscow’s attack on Ukraine on Nations and Regions in the Russian Federation’, ‘Deimperialisation and Decolonisation. The Prison of Nations after the war’ and ‘Western Policy Towards Russia - Beyond the Status Quo’. An extensive list of speakers, including experts in foreign affairs, academics and politicians, are set to take the floor over the course of the conference.

When: Tuesday @ 09:30 – 18:30
Where: SPAAK 5B1

A live video link in English is available here, and in Russian here.

More information on the event can be found here.

Press conference

A press conference on the same topic with Janusz Bugajski, Pavlo Klimkin, Ahmed Zakayev , Marina Khankhalaeva, and ECR MEPs Anna Fotyga and Kosma Złotowski is also scheduled.

When: Tuesday at 14:00
Where: Anna Politkovskaya press room

Journalists wishing to ask questions remotely can connect via this link.

Opening of the exhibition ‘Janusz Krasiński. No more silence.’

On Wednesday, ECR MEP Prof Zdzisław Krasnodębski will open the exhibition ‘Janusz Krasiński. No more silence.’, in cooperation with the National Centre for Culture, Warsaw. The exhibition will be accompanied by a film screening of ‘A censored life’, a documentary on Janusz Krasiński by Director Joanna Żamojdo, followed by a debate. The year 1945 marked no liberation for many countries from Eastern Europe and the Baltic States, only the beginning of a new period of captivity. Janusz Krasiński was a writer and a prisoner of both Nazi German concentration camps and the communist security apparatus. His life story was defined by these two totalitarian regimes.

Opening of the exhibition
When: Wednesday @ 12:30
Where: Mezzanine Yehudi Menuhin, SPAAK 2nd floor

Film screening
When: Wednesday @ 17:30
Where: SPAAK 7C50

The positive role of hunters in protecting EU biodiversity

On Wednesday, ECR MEPs Andrey Slabakov and Pietro Fiocchi will host a discussion on the positive role of hunters in protecting biodiversity across the Union. Often forgotten and stigmatised, hunters and fishermen play an indispensable role in safeguarding biodiversity. In particular, the event will focus on three pressing issues. Firstly, the total ban of the use of lead in wetlands. The definition of wetlands lacks clarity, definition and intelligibility and is contrary to general principles of EU law, in particular those of proportionality and legal certainty. It is also problematic for sports and economic activities, such as hunting and fishing. Secondly, the sharp increase in the wolf population, which has led to economic damage to local communities across the Member states. Thirdly, CITES (Convention International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), which bans legal trophy hunting import and export, thus having a negative impact on both hunters and local communities in African countries.

When: Wednesday @ 9:30 – 13:30
Where: SPAAK 1A2